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amex-platinums

[Update 2020.1] If you still have this card, note that it will automatically be converted to the standard AMEX Platinum card on 2020.3.26. If you have not yet applied for the standard Platinum card, remember to cancel this card first to avoid triggering the lifetime restriction. You can also apply for a standard Platinum card before the automatic conversion so you do not waste the welcome bonus. Currently, the standard Platinum card may show a 75,000 MR bonus in incognito mode or when using a VPN.

[Update 2019.10] This card can no longer be applied for. Based on the Ameriprise website, the credit card has already been changed to a Visa version, and based on its features, it is basically crushed by the Double Cash. Current AMEX Platinum Ameriprise cardholders will probably be converted to the regular Platinum card in the near future. Since there were no Ameriprise-specific benefits before anyway, the conversion should not have much impact.

[Update 2/7] This card is the Ameriprise version of the AMEX Platinum card. For most of the past, it had no welcome bonus, but the first-year annual fee was waived. Now AMEX has standardized the welcome bonuses across different versions of the Platinum card. This card now also comes with a 60,000-point welcome bonus, but the tradeoff is that the first-year annual fee is no longer waived. Note that based on the terms, people who previously received the 25,000-point bonus on this card likely will not be eligible for the bonus again. However, if you previously only applied for the no-fee-first-year version, you may still be eligible. In addition, based on prior testing, the welcome bonuses on different versions of the Platinum card are independent of each other, and you can get them all.

Ameriprise Platinum Card Overview

Application Link:

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Key Features

  • Welcome bonus: First-year annual fee waived
  • Earning MR: 5x MR on airfare, 1x on other purchases; earn an extra 5,000 MR for every $20,000 spent
  • MR redemption: Transfer to many airline mileage programs and hotel points programs; see the MR guide for details
  • No foreign transaction fee
  • $200 annual airline incidental reimbursement per calendar year
  • $550 annual fee

Highlights

  • High welcome bonus: The 60,000 Membership Rewards points can be transferred 1:1 to many airline mileage programs. When redeemed for international flights, the value can be around 1.6 cent per point, so the welcome bonus is worth about $960 in cash value.
  • $200 airline credit: You get up to $200 per calendar year in airline incidental reimbursements, making the effective annual fee $250. You can use it once in your first year and again at the beginning of your second year, effectively getting the reimbursement twice while holding the card for one year. This reimbursement can often be triggered easily by purchasing airline gift cards. See: AMEX airline reimbursement analysis
  • $200 in Uber Credit each year + Uber VIP status: Add your Platinum card to your Uber account and your account will become VIP, which can provide benefits such as access to better car types. At the same time, your Uber account will receive $15 in Credit during each of the first 11 months of the year, and $35 in December. The Credit expires at the end of each month.
  • Annual Saks reimbursement: This $100 annual Saks reimbursement benefit can now be enrolled in through the link below. Specifically, you can get up to $50 reimbursed from January to June and another $50 from July to December. Based on the terms, this reimbursement excludes Saks Fifth gift cards and online or in-store purchases at the Outlet. Exactly how it works in practice still depends on future DP from readers. In any case, an extra $100 is always nice. Purchases on authorized user cards can also trigger this reimbursement (combined cap of $50 across the primary and authorized user cards). Only personal Platinum cards are eligible, such as the regular Platinum, Mercedes-Benz Platinum, and other Platinum flavors. The reimbursement is separate for each version. Saks $100 Benefit enrollment link (if you get an error after clicking, try logging into your AMEX Platinum account first and then click the link again)
  • 5x MR on airfare and hotels: Airfare must be purchased directly from the airline or through AMEX Travel to earn it. My guess is that as long as the charge comes directly from the airline, it may trigger 5x, for example on orbitz, but this still needs verification. As for whether MPX earns 5x, that also needs testing. The detailed terms can be found in the Benefits section for Platinum cards. Hotels must be booked through amextravel.com, and sometimes this can be combined with AMEX Offer. (This benefit applies to all versions of the Platinum card, including the regular Platinum, Mercedes-Benz Platinum, Schwab Platinum, and Ameriprise Platinum)
  • FHR benefit: Hotels in the FHR program booked through AMEX Travel now also earn 5x MR. However, this is limited to prepaid bookings that can be made directly online; phone bookings do not qualify. FHR mainly includes distinctive luxury hotels. When booking with the Platinum card, you can enjoy the following benefits:
    • Noon check-in, when available
    • Room upgrade upon arrival, when available (usually suite upgrades)
    • Daily breakfast for two people
    • Guaranteed 4pm late check-out
    • Complimentary Wi-Fi
    • A unique property benefit (such as a $100 hotel credit or $100 dining credit)
    • Some hotels in China are not expensive to begin with, so that $100 credit can be very nice
  • Premium airport lounge access: Complimentary access to Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs, Airspace Lounges, Priority Pass
  • A long list of premium benefits (official benefits page): Hilton Gold status with free breakfast; Starwood (SPG) Gold status with room upgrades and high-speed internet; reimbursement for Global Entry and TSA Pre fees; Fine Hotels benefits (details); free public Wi-Fi through Boingo membership; free magazines; InCircle membership; elite status with Avis, Hertz, and National Car Rental; and more. After adding Platinum authorized users (authorized user cards require an additional annual fee), those cardholders can also enroll in the above benefits as well, usually by phone.

AMEX card built-in benefits

  • AMEX offer: Spend $20 at Amazon, get $20 back; spend $15 at Walmart, get $5 back; pay your phone bill and get $10 back on $75. Generous AMEX often sends cardholders good Offers that let you earn cash back while spending. See also: Recent good AMEX Offers, Past good AMEX Offers summary, AMEX OFFER explained
  • Small Business Day: AMEX credit cards can participate in the annual Small Business Day promotion, with extra rewards for spending at eligible merchants. See: Introduction to the Small Business Day promotion
  • Free ShopRunner membership: Enjoy free 2-day shipping at many online stores. See details here: official link
  • Extended warranty: Items purchased in full with an AMEX card get the manufacturer warranty automatically extended by one year
  • Free credit report: Cardholders can check their EX credit score for free. See: Comparison of free credit scores

Cons

  • This is a charge card, so you need to pay the statement balance in full after each billing cycle; otherwise the interest is extremely high
  • The annual fee is $550, and adding Platinum authorized users also requires an additional annual fee

Points system overview

  • Points Value: The average value is 1.5c/p, so 100 MR = $1.5 (Points Value & Analysis)
  • Direct Redemption: Redeem travel through amextravel.com at 1c/p (without a premium card); redeem eligible flights through amextravel.com at 1.54c/p (with Business Platinum); redeem for cash in an investment account at 1.1c/p (with Schwab Platinum).
  • Points Transfers: Transfer 1:1 to ANA miles (good for round-trip US-China flights and round-the-world tickets); transfer 1:1 to British Airways miles (good for China-Japan routes and short-haul domestic US redemptions); transfer 1:1 to Air Canada miles (good for US-China business class awards and infant tickets); transfer 1:1 to Delta (good for business class, and can also redeem any Delta flight at 1c/p).
  • Points Features: All MR points earned by one person are pooled into a single account and can be used directly. As long as you still have at least one MR-earning card open, all MR points will remain valid; be sure to use them up before closing all of your cards. Nearly all MR-earning cards allow you to transfer MR points to airline miles or hotel points. MR points can be transferred to airline or hotel accounts in an authorized user's name.
  • My Take: The most common use of MR is transferring to airline miles, mainly ANA, Air Canada, Delta, and British Airways. Delta can help cover SkyTeam options; ANA and AC can selectively cover Star Alliance options; BA can be used for some oneworld awards. Among these, ANA is especially valuable for US-China economy, business, and first class awards. AC and Delta are also good for covering domestic US flights, while BA is best for nonstop domestic US flights. Hotel transfers are a weak spot for MR, and none are really worth transferring to. As for booking hotels or flights directly through AMEX Travel, you usually only get 1 cent per point in value, so I generally do not recommend it. Cash back and gift cards also max out at only 1 cent per point. Therefore, the final valuation is 1.7c, mainly considering the broad airline partner coverage, mostly instant transfer times (ANA takes 2-3 days; others are instant), and the value of these airline miles. The weaknesses are that MR is not very useful for hotel redemptions, and direct airfare bookings do not provide strong value either.
  • Detailed Analysis: Membership Rewards Guide >>

My take:

This card is the Ameriprise version of the AMEX Platinum card. For most of the past, it had no sign-up bonus but waived the first-year annual fee. Now AMEX has standardized the welcome bonuses across different versions of the Platinum card. This card now also has a 60,000 sign-up bonus, but the tradeoff is that the first-year annual fee is no longer waived. Note that according to the terms, people who previously received the 25,000 bonus on this card probably will not be eligible for the bonus again, but if you previously only got the no-annual-fee version, you may still be eligible. In addition, based on past data points, the welcome bonuses on different Platinum versions have been independent, so you could get them all.

Hold for one year: I applied for this card not because I wanted to keep it long term, but because I do not currently need that many premium benefits. If you hold this card for one year, you can get close to $1,000 in value, which is excellent for opening a single card. Also, although the first-year annual fee looks scary, you can get back $400 through airline reimbursements, so in effect you are only paying $150 out of pocket. If you can also use the $200 Uber benefit, then AMEX is effectively paying you $50. On top of that, you get a year of AMEX Offers and all kinds of premium perks, so it is still quite worthwhile. This card’s Purchase Protection is excellent; if something you bought gets lost, it can be fully reimbursed, making this an unusually good card for people who often lose things.

Long-term holding: For those who want to keep it long term, the key question is whether you can use the $200 annual Uber credit, the included premium benefits, and the 5x earnings on airfare and hotels. From an annual-fee perspective, the $100 Saks reimbursement + Uber $200 Credit + $200 airline reimbursement adds up to $500 in value, so the effective annual fee is only $50. Paying just $50 for a large package of benefits and a metal card is, in my view, a pretty good deal.

A few things to do after getting the card

Although this card comes with many benefits, unlike a typical card, many of them require enrollment before they take effect. So I am listing them here as a reminder not to forget to register:

A reminder for anyone planning to apply: do not spend too much immediately after getting the card. This card is a Charge card, and in AMEX’s risk system it is especially easy to trigger a Financial Review. If you do not pass, all of your AMEX cards could potentially be shut down. For details, see: Analysis of why AMEX credit cards get shut down.

Application:

  • Application difficulty: This card is relatively easy; in general, around one year of credit history is often enough for instant approval
  • Application status: official application status check link
  • Notes:
    • Before applying, please read AMEX bank characteristics; can apply without an SSN. If you are not approved or your application is pending, you can try reconsideration
    • This card can be held at the same time as the standard AMEX Platinum card, and the sign-up bonuses do not affect each other. Although this card officially requires you to be an Ameriprise customer, in practice people have been approved even without being customers, so it does not seem to matter. The highest sign-up bonus this card ever had was 25,000, and that offer has already expired.

Application link:

None